When you go out on a limb on a guy and it starts slow, at least I can pull the “it’s a long season” card. Or the “his back has been a little spasmy” card. Hah, little Pod joke there…

I gotta say, I love you commenters here on Razzball. A lot of Andrew Wiggins frustration has been thrown around, like “he single-handedly killed my FG%”, and “he’s why I started 1-8”, and “Wiggins must be dating yet another one of those Kardashians”. But I was really honored to say almost all of the vitriol wasn’t at me. Hell, I was expecting to be served on the coals for that one! Or some sort of cliche that works… Maybe it was out of the decency of your hearts since I obviously own him on several teams with this rank. I got way more hate for saying Nate Robinson was a good opening night streamer/last draft pick in 12ers! But like the worst drunken one night stand in history, I got rid of Nate about 4 or 5 minutes in. While with Wiggins, I’m entrenched in a life-long relationship. Hope my wife isn’t reading this! After a really rocky start, Wiggins finally looked like the breakout talent I was hoping for on Saturday night against the Bulls, going 31/3/2/0/1 with only 1 TO and hit 4 treys. Of course it wouldn’t be a pristine line, but then again what relationship is suddenly perfect?! Except my marriage of course! Wiggy still shot like poo (11-27) and had an odd 5-10 FT game. He’s usually gonna be a high-volume 80% guy from the stripe, plus he hit 4-5 from deep, so there’s still hope the FG% climbs as his bum back gets healthier and he shoots his way out of it. Of course you can point to Kevin Martin not playing (personal) for the burst in treys, but big picture we still think K-Mart gets moved. Even with K-Mart, they’re using him as a 6th man and Wiggy is the only real perimeter option in the starting 5 anyway. I also think with a little more health, he’ll play more aggressive on D. The one swat he had was a legit one, not a lazy strip that’s scored a block, WHICH STILL FRUSTRATES ME! The buy low window is closing rapidly, so if you’re still hoping to buy in on Wiggy, I’d wait until tonight and see if he has another rough shooting game before opening the floodgates. If you own Wiggy, definitely hold, particularly with the Wolves playing 5 games this week. Here’s what else went down over the weekend in NBA action, plus The 7 Ahead for week 3:

Elfrid Payton – Well, after Skiles put Elfird on the Shelfrid, frustrated fantasy owners were wondering if THEY could put the Elfrid on the Shelfrid. It’s not even Thanksgiving yet, get outta here with this Christmas talk! I emphatically said hold, and patient owners got a nice 20/2/5/3/1 game Saturday on 8-10 shooting (4-4 FT) with only 1 TO, given against Philly. Skiles was like, “fantasy owners hate your shooting, TO and %s, fix those and you get run!”

Dewayne Dedmon – Back-to-back 3 block games getting starts for the brittle Nikola Vucevic. Don’t get me wrong, love Vuc’s game and the added layer of D-stats make him a saucy lasagna, but one of those really leaky ones where it’s hard to get a clean square out of the pan…

Jared Sullinger – One of the bigger weekends – at least in my book as he went from being in a rotational hell to a must-add – Sully followed up a rainbow line with a 21/8/3/1/2 Friday night, shooting 9-13 with 3 treys. Only 22 minutes, but even though B-Rad won’t play him 30, this was an epic blowout that kept them even lower.

Kelly Olynyk – Well, if Olynyk also chimed in with how bad he’s started, maybe that whole game Friday v. the Wiz should be thrown out! 19/7/4/4/1 with 3 treys, and if either of these guys played under 10 minutes next time out, it really wouldn’t surprise anyone…

Bradley Beal – Left in a ton of pain Saturday night with a shoulder issue. I didn’t see a single update even from the X-rays yesterday, so I’m pretty friggin’ worried. Stay tuned there; Gary Neal likely slides in as the starting two, and maybe my boy Kelly Oubre can finally get his blue balls off the bench. Dude just wants to run!

John Wall – This is just getting stupid. 3 blocks Friday and another Saturday, giving him a block in every game this year. Great Wall of Why-You-Tryin-A?!

T.J. McConnell – The run of Sixers fantasy assets coming out of nowhere continues! Little bit of a down Friday going 8/1/4, but salvaged it with a couple of treys. Then just went nuts Saturday, eschewing the Great Wall of Why-You-Tryin-A for 6/8/9/3/2. Who’s getting blocked by friggin’ T.J. McConnell?!?! Hopefully it was Elfrid or else he’s be on my Shelfrid too!

Rondae Hollis-Jefferson – I don’t know if there’s been a worse position in basketball the past year+ than starting SG in Brooklyn. RHJ, even for his sushi rawness, might have automatically been the best on his first start. Not getting huge run, but 5/11/3/1/0 and 2/7/5/3/0 with no TO is better than 95% of the games Nets starting SGs have given them. The 0-7 Nets are about to blow it all up, so RHJ has a little upside too for more run as the season moves on.

Giannis Antetokounmpo – Whoa, his full name is exactly 20 letters long! So on any given night, we now EXPECT him to score a point for every letter. 20/7/1/2/1 on Friday, but then disappointed us for 11/6/2 Saturday. Greek Freak is only 10 letters, at least he did better than every letter for that one!

John Henson – A tale of two Achilles! After being held out several games, went nuts against the Knicks on Friday for 22/5/1/1/3 on a crazy efficient night (8-12 FG 6-7 FT), but then Kidd eased off the throttle and played Mr. Muppet 9 minutes Saturday of bleh. You have to imagine they were being careful on a back-to-back, so it’s good seeing him out there at all. Right there in the Aaron Gordon/Myles Turner range.

Michael Carter-Williams – Continues to miss time with a kankle, and the Bucks continue to send out their clown car of PG replacements. Joining the fun is Tyler Ennis, who spends a good 15 minutes blowing up balloon animals and haunting 15% of the population’s dreams.

Kent Bazemore – I know I’ve written this a few times, but it’s just nuts that a guy I saw in college in the CAA who wasn’t even a standout is all the sudden a full-fledged fantasy contributor. Look at his college stats! For Old Dominion! Given I saw him in either 08-09 or 09-10, but shot 40.7% from the field as a senior?! Man, good for him to get to where he is now! 25/4/3/2/0 with 4 treys on Saturday, and wow, yeah he’s must-own in 12ers… Who woulda thought…

Kyle Korver – Finally had a game worth the name on the back of his jersey on Friday, going 22/7/5/3/1 on an absurd 8-8 shooting hitting all 4 treys. But then it went blah again, for 7/2/6/0/0 with one trey on Saturday.

Anthony Davis – Finally had that monster Brow game to make all of our eyebrows jealous, going 43/10/3/4/3 on Friday night, but then was only a normal Brow for 25/6/4/1/2 against the Mavs. Normalcy mostly because he let a schlub like Jeremy Evansdo this to him… And shocker, the Pelicans lost them both. What a joke franchise.

Will Barton – I lied. On Friday I called him one of the most consistent bench contributors this year, but he was better than just a contributor AND started Friday against the Warriors! 19/8/5/2/1 slash with a pair of treys, playing a whopping 39 minutes. Wilson Chandler still looms once his titanium hip heals up, but for the short-term, Barton is worth an add in virtually all leagues.

James Harden – Harden owners themselves were fearing the beard and the FG%, but eliteness came with the swiftness of a Joe Flacco throw this weekend with 43/6/13 and 46/4/2 lines, with 9 total treys and his usual bajillion FT.

Clint Capela – Showed what he can do on Dwight Howard DNPs with a 13/12/2/0/4 line against the Kings on Friday. Also showed the Rockets they can survive by resting Dwight. Nothing looking good for Dwight.

Marcus Thornton – As the Rockets keep going small with Terrence Jones healing his eyelid that was attacked by a rabid mountain lion, the Bayou Bomber is getting starts and hitting treys! Nothing but a ThrAGNOF though…

Darren Collison – Colly hurtin’ the hammy. Colly hurting the Razzball Friends and Family. Colly make me no jolly. MRI made him cry. The missed time is a friggin’ crime.

Rajon Rondo – Well, the real crime is it made Rondo look like a good fantasy player again! 14/12/15/4/0 against the Warriors, but I am hereby stripping his tripdub since he took 20 shots. 20 shots, Rondo?! That was the least advised 20 shots an NBA player took since that “super” night P.J. Tucker had last summer.

Nikola Mirotic – Wowwwwww, it’s almost like we know what we’re talking about! Three straight awful games where he’s been both cold and putrid on defense. In the ranks, I said “but I do question his defense costing him some minutes at times.” That’s me quoting me!

Joakim Noah – While somehow his shooting continues to regress (maybe the awful form is catching up with him), he still showed how he could be valuable with a 3/11/7/1/1 line against the Wolves. Although when Miro is hot and not giving up a basket every touch near him, Noah’s minutes will be rough.

Nemanja Bjelica – By far his best game in the NBA for 17/11/5/1/1 against the Bulls in the shocking OT win. No K-Mart helped the minutes and shots, but not to give away too much, he’s worth a look this week (read below)!

Dwight Powell – Starting to buy in as a 12er hold option. In comments and a few tweets I initially said the minutes keep him in the streaming class, but if he keeps getting better and better, it’s tough to see the Mavs pushing his run down. That said, 15/7/1/0/1 last time out, but he wants to be a shooter and shot 7-9. That won’t continue. He hasn’t topped 26 minutes yet either, and won’t unless Dirk Nowitzki is out. Realllllly close to a must-own in 12ers, but I think Sully is a better own and in weekly I’d rather roll out a 5-game Bjelica.

Matthew Dellavedova – Another 9 assists, in one of the most improbable 4 out of 5 game 7+ assist runs we’ll see this season. Well, if you’re starting Richard Jefferson and playing him 30+ minutes, I guess ANYTHING IS POSSSSSIBLLLEEEEE!

Paul George – A 4-game week of near fantasy-MVP level basketball. Awesome to go against him in REL.

Robin Lopez – A lot of “drop Rolo” sentiment out there, and like last year, here I am again saying to hold onto this worthless guy! 14/13/4/0/1 yesterday afternoon, given it was against a soft Lakers front line. Roy Hibbert out there trying to grab rebounds like they’re shrimp cocktails!

Eric Bledsoe – Brandon Knight played another game of TO-vortex to give E Bled the biggie! Knight with 8 TO, while E Bled for 28/2/11 and “only” 2 TO. I feel like someone in OKC was giving Knight the ol’ Happy Gilmore heckle. “Green’s that way, and you’re that way! Hahahaha, jackass!”

Kevin Durant – Didn’t get a block last night for the first time this season. CUT HIM IMMEDIATELY!

Bang The Drummond Slowly – We made a Razzball term for hack-a-Drummond, and yet it never seems to be utilized by Pistons opponents! The Blazers went for it late last night, and Drummond went a solid 1-6. Eesh. Here’s to hoping a game the Blazers still lost by 17 didn’t lose Drummond owners FT%… Then again, you easily won boards with another ridiculous 29/27 outing with 2 steals and 3 blocks.

Reggie Jackson – Was LeBron in the playoffs in 2007 against the Pistons-esque. Pistons fans are both happy for the R-Jax praise and hate me for the reference simultaneously! Jackson went nuts for 26 in the 4th quarter, leading the Pistons to a 17 point win in a, wait for it, 41-11 4th quarter. Ended up with a career-high 40 burger.

Overall Thoughts: My REL squad has suffered through two steals ties and an AST tie with Ricky Rubio and Zach LaVine having a 2 then 3 game week. Frustrating. The Wolves finally get their big run in week 3. In weekly leagues, all your 2-game week teams are untouchable, save for your absolute studs. I decided to only highlight 5 and 2 game weeks (or any other outliers) for the rest of the season, since 4-game weeks were a little too common to be worthy of any highlighting. Fairly full slates every day this week except for Thursday, so be sure to maximize your streaming!

Monday: After that crazy DET victory, they go straight to @GSW. Yikes. Either they’ll stay hot and be close, or have an epic hangover. IND and POR are your other back-to-backs, no big worries there. Bulls go @PHI – Mirotic’s defense finally won’t be an issue! I expect he breaks back out, but not playing him in weekly.

Tuesday: Only the Wolves have a back-to-back, and I don’t think we see any DNPs for the regulars. No, Kevin Garnett doesn’t count, as he is irregular on a fantasy roster. As of this writing, we’re still awaiting news on Beal, but it seems very likely he’ll miss at least one game. Gary Neal will be needed for some scoring and pace against OKC. DAL goes @NO, the worst run franchise in the NBA, and head into a back-to-back. Wouldn’t be surprised to see some vet DNPs in that one before the Clips on Wednesday. BOS, CHA, LAL, MIL, NOP, NYK, & TOR also head into back-to-backs; I’m keeping an eye on DeMarre Carroll‘s plantar fascia that cost him the game yesterday and how the Bucks handle Henson’s minutes. Jrue Holiday likely sits one.

Wednesday: Same back-to-back concerns with Tuesday as some teams may sit the second leg, and GSW and LAC head into back-to-backs. Not a huge concern for any of their players though. ATL plays NOP at home, aka easiest win ever. Dennis Schroder makes a nice DFS play especially if this is the NOP game Jrue sits, but on a full slate in year-long, I dunno how many lineups he cracks. Warriors probably blow out the Grizz again, so maybe they hold off on starters’ minutes. Raptors go at Philly – if Carroll is being managed, this would be the one to sit him.

Thursday: Three games, [email protected], [email protected], and [email protected] Ohhhhhh man, Hassan Whiteside vs. Rudy Gobert!!!!!! Also the battle of Slim’s favorite teams… Tyler Johnson and Justise Winslow have been OK, but I dunno how much you wanna buy them as streamers, and the Jazz have no one usable that is widely available. T.J Warren is off a 17-pt game and could be a nice fill-in, and P.J. Tucker has been decent enough for the streamer range as well. Zach LaVine might be a good roll of the dice if the Warriors make that game out of hand. MIN and UTA are the teams heading into back-to-backs, so maybe the Wolves limit Rubio a tad in a blowout. Festus Ezeli could continue to be a nice blocking streamer, even with Andrew Bogut back.

Friday: Another very full slate, with BKN, CLE, DAL, DEN, HOU, ORL, & PHI heading into back-to-backs. Brook Lopez‘s clownfoot avoided a major injury, but gotta think he sits Fri or Sat on a West Coast back-to-back. Playing some weaker Eastern teams, maybe the Cavs sit a vet, especially with LeBron James already banged up. DAL is playing the Lakers Fri then @HOU, gotta imagine against the Lakers is the game to sit healing vets. OKC hosts PHI, Dion Waiters stream time!!!!

Saturday: Same list above heading into the second day of b2bs, with only DET playing both Saturday and Sunday. Not really any great streamers anymore on DET by %-owned. GSW is gonna throttle the Nets at home, I’d be cautioned by the fringy guys there. Oh dear lord, the Spurs host the Sixers. Pop is going to bench everyone, or play everyone only 15 minutes… Yikes.

Sunday: Nice 7-game Sunday with roughly half the teams going, but obviously end-of-week streaming is paramount. BOS, LAL, MEM, OKC & POR head into back-to-backs. If anyone is banged up, be sure to check in if they’re playing or have a good sense of certainly if picking them up in daily moves-tomorrow settings like RCLs. Schroder seems to bounce around on my line-ups, definitely don’t like him agaisnt the Jazz. Hornets host Portland, so Jeremy Lamb could see nice run. Knicks host those terrible Pelicans, I like both Jerian Grant andLangston Galloway as G streamers. Up front it’s tough to see streamers I love right now other than Bjelica, maybe you roll withSteven Adams who is always a popular big man stream play.

I hope everyone’s week 2 went solid, and we’re pumped for week 3! Hard to believe 2 weeks are already in the books… Hope you had a good weekend, Razzball Nation!

Need some trade help 9 catg weekly league Drummond for milsap, because I have decent bigs and Drummond is killing my ft. My other bigs are bosh Hartford Jefferson love tjones. Should I command more or pull the trigger thanks.

@Dave: my two cents mate: I’d def do that, particularly since you have a couple of vume rebounders already, plus Sap would be an upgrade at stls while keeping your blks respectable. Having the Atlanta frontcourt this year should cover most of your bases

Funny thing is, I still have that insane LBJ vs Pistons conf finals game laying around somewhere. Watched yesterday entire game (am a Morris owner) and I must say, I love this pistons squad. They may now be my fav team to watch as my Bulls look the polar opposite to what they were last year, particularly on D, an particularly with Rose still thinkin it’s 2011.

Speaking of LBJ: stop makin us owners paranoid! He’s not “banged up” as a result of being a vet – he just got a knee into that massive thigh of his. Must be hard being that tall and muscle-bound, poor lil fella…

Well, I picked up tjones and his 1 1/2 eyelids. I really hope he helps in my brds and fg% and pts as I’m lacking there. Grabbed me burks as well. On the topic of Kmart: do you see his usage staying as is, when coming off the bench? It was essentially picking between he an burks off the wire and I went with the guy who has upside. But I need the pts and ftms out of either so who would you go with?

Isn’t it incredible that Carl Weathers played Mack in Predator, Action Jackson, then a man who lost a hand to an alligator, and a washed up version of himself on arrested development? Legend.

@jb Gilpin: let me throw in Barton’s name in the mix along with kmart and burks (who is currently on my roster). Oh and still fine for me to trade my gay for Hayward? Think those counting cats rise? 14 cat roto FYI

@Lasandro: Hah, yeah that Pistons game yesterday was awesome! Rjax was unbelievable.

Well LeBron is questionable now with the thigh plus his bad back. Just sayin! Upside, yeah i like Burks, Kmart looming trade will be rough. Ummm, would hold Burks still over Barton, but do like Barton. Yup get Hayward!

I have question someone dropped David Lee and I picked him up hopping he might make a come back later on, and now someone dropped Gourgi Dieng. should I drop david lee for him? Or Evan Turner?
9 cat roto

I am in need for a descent PG with assist. My blocks are pretty high but for some strange reason my rebound is really low right now. In terms of 3pt I am pretty up there right now and Covington comes back I think my 3s steals and blocks are set. I am actually ranked top 2 in FT% which surprised me too.

Yikes tough week! Mannnn, I don’t wanna give up on Gordon. I wanna see how Bjelica does tonight with Kmart back. Covington stash is appealing, but I wanna give Gordon a few more games, but yeah, I’ll lose Gordon for Parsons

Wiggins…. Mmm. Hah. To tell you honestly, I’m still gonna reach for him in next year’s draft. I wanna be one of the guys who owns him when he’s already a top 10 fantasy player. Hah.

As you know my week 2 was a disaster. My team was too crippled to even win 4 categories (only won tos and 3PM). Smart and Jones are back this week but unfortunately (I just couldn’t catch a break) Collison and Carroll are injured. Just damn. But I’m still pretty optimistic and hoping for a hugh win this. Good luck to everyone.

@Dante Green: Hah yeah with whatever happens this year, I prob will too. Still think he could have a run where he is this yr! Yeah tough week for me too as I commented to ya yest… Here’s to a new week!

@hamtime: Hey man! 1. Damn both seemed close to me… If you have BLK covered and an AST need, I’m good getting Lowry. No winners, just seem like team dependent. 2. Eeessshhh wish I could be more optimistic, but Bogut is back tonight. Festus could still be usable, but lower mins. 3. I’ll stick with Mo, then Afflalo then Lou

2 below – eesh, Hill if a PG need, but Middleton I dunno… I still wanna see Tjones finally play!

Holding WCS in 12 team 9 cat H2H? No bench so 144 rostered players must start. Roster leans big w / Powell and WCS in U spots. Really the only other consideration is Iguadola. Markieff was just dropped but still on waivers..

@Fitz: Ugh yeah I had a tough week in that league, but got Rose for free and looking to bounce back. Somehow my punt TO team didn’t lose TO, just shows how many mins I ceded…

Def wanna hold Burks. And Bazemore is too hot to cut. I think it might be Myles Turner, noooooooooooooo!! If Bazemore has a big cool off game, it can be him, or you can always wait a game and see how Tjones looks in the first one back

That Pistons comeback (or was it a Blazers collapse?) was pretty epic last night with Reggie and Drummond going bonkers. I can’t recall the last time I saw a game turn on a dime like that so late into the contest. Portland won each of the first three Qs and then never came out for the fourth. If Detroit started the way they finished, they might’ve won by 80.

Yeesh, that’s rough that you had to go against PG13 in your REL this past week – he was a monstaaaa! Looks like he’s starting to figure out the whole “position-less” basketball thing where it doesn’t matter if you’re listed as a SF or PF in the programs, just go out and play better than the guy you’re guarding.

Btw – loving this “7 Ahead” format on Monday mornings. If I have a vote, I’m saying it’s a keeper!

Need some advice if ya don’t mind…I’m trying to figure out if I should activate Jimmy Buckets (weekly lock) with only two games (@PHI, v CHA) in 8-cat roto. Options for who I would have to bump out to make room for him:

@Mic C: Bazemore just hasssss to cool off, I don’t think he’s 12er must own all year. Worth holding now. Batum should get better, 2 blowouts in past 3, one win one loss, and I think that took a little bit of the ball outta his hands. the game against the Spurs, Kemba couldn’t miss, so he just dribbled up and shot a lot

Hey JB, lost 2 weeks in a row… Was told by Razzball to target Lillard to improve 3s but had to settle for Lowry… Anything else I can do besides wait for my team to get healthy? Cousins was injured for me last week but now Beal got hurt (hopefully not too bad). Also picked up Collison for the extra assists (but he’s hurt).

10 Man H2H (Punt FT)

1) I traded John Wall + Okafor for Oladipo + Faried. (Scared of Okafor’s rookie season)
2) I traded Mudiay for Thaddeus Young (was weak in SF position)
3) I traded Rubio + Faried for Lowry (needed 3s and Faried looked too inconsistent) and I picked up Collison from FA

@Chinzy: Yeah injuries def make things tough, I almost think you have a little overkill at C. Your rebounding and blocks are insane. I probably woulda held Wall, like the Young move, and like the Lowry move. You could use one more source of AST, but Cousins back will help a ton. Overall team looks pretty good! Maybe could use one more scorer as well

Hey, don’t hate on the Bucks’ PG clown car. That clown car basically means my Duchess is the primary ball-handler and you know what’s been going on since that started? The Bucks are winning. MCW doesn’t just kill his team in the real world, he obliterates the fantasy stats of those around him with a high usage rate and one of the worst (if not THE worst) ORPMs among starting PGs. Here’s to hoping they just put a defensive minded PG there and let Middleton run the show.

Now in all seriousness, how patient should I be with Tyson Chandler in a 10-team, 11-man league ? I know, I know, it depends on who’s on the wire (I anticipate I’ll come asking tomorrow), but I guess I’m more wondering how long before I begin to treat Chandler as a “possible drop if someone better comes along?”

I hope the Bucks lose every game with MCW at the helm. They actually might. Seriously, his DRPM last was top 12 I think, and his ORPM couldn’t crack top 75 *among PGs*. Eventually Kidd has to realize MCW does not have Kidd-vision, nor the work ethic to develop a long rang shot. He’s got to see the metrics on the wall and their own win-loss record without MCW.

@Kevin: Man, I wish we had an official timetable. I own him in a couple (12ers though) and holding. Ummmm, I think Hibbert probably needs to be owned for now. If deciding between those two, if you needed a big I’d be OK losing Colly for Hibby

@jcg: A lot of good options, it’s tough to make ROS calls when streaming looks like the way to go! Chandler I’d take over Bjelica, like Barton this week but dunno about ROS, even with your awesome bigs might Henson or Turner over Jerian

Am I crazy to think that Whiteside will struggle to keep this level of production up? I mean 14.7 points, 10.9 rebounds, and 4.0 blocks on 64% shooting seems unsustainable right? Thoughts on selling high? What specific players (SF is a position of need, as is 3-point shooting) are reasonable to ask for in return?

@SheriffMcRawDawg: Holy hell, robust wire for a 20er! Yeah gimme Henson over Capela. Don’t think you need PG, but man Grant should be owned! I might grab him over Wroten even though I do like his stash

@SheriffMcRawDawg: Yeah I’m good losing Wroten for Henson. Ummm Dragic has really hit a floor. Wiggins looks awesome already tonight, i think the window is closed there. Haha in a 20er you gotta hold, but the solace is he looks incredible! Just the minutes are the issue… Ugh…

Hey JB, I’m back after seeing the email notification. I kinda freaked because I was using my work computer at the time which had some sensitive information on it. Makes sense that it was probably just a rogue ad, and I appreciate you and the tech guys getting to the bottom of it. Anyways, I wanted to pick your brains on ROS projections for Vucevic, Bazemore, and Henson.

Vuc really surprised me by piling on the defensive stats to start off the season. I saw a lot of people saying that it is because Skiles emphasizes more aggressive defense. Do you guys buy into this and think he can sustain the blocks and steals ROS?

Henson. We all know what he can do, but is this season going to be just like the last one where we only see glimmers of his potential for only a few minutes each game? My patience is wearing thin.

Bazemore: I really like what I’m seeing from him and am glad that I burned a waiver on him. I think the fact that ATL wins when he plays and that he still gets about 30mpg when Korver & Shroeder play is a very encouraging sign for his role ROS.

I’m really hoping that Vucevic or Henson can become a highish-end shot blocker because then that allows me to freely trade off Ibaka, who really only contributes in the categories I’m already very strong in. Through the first two weeks my team has 97 blocks, next closest has 83; and after that, the team with the third highest blocks has 60. I think I can afford to deal Ibaka, but a lot of owners have been scared off by some poor performances of late.

Ibaka+kicker for Butler was a no, as was Ibaka for Milsap. Right now I’m working on Ibaka+Reke for Kyrie+Collison. There’s a ton of risk on both sides, but I think it can work for me given my dominance in the big man cats. Do you think this trade is worth it in a deep keeper league?

@Ryan: Thanks for coming back! Sorry again about that, I don’t think we have a resolution, but it’s set up through an ad server that people have to contact and figure out, we yell at them for a crap ad, yada yada haha. It’s still getting looked into, but def not a hack, sorry again about that!

I actually kinda do buy Vuc D stats. I also buy he’s a little brittle, so tempering expectations for GP.

Yup you summed up Henson perfectly. 10ers he’s tough to hold, I’m holding on in any deeper.

Bazemore, super hot right now,. think it could cool, but def riding while hot.

Deep keeper, yeah that’s a nice buy low for Kyrie. Risk on both side, but benefits your team even if you give up slightly more raw value

I’m really conflicted on Wiggins. I traded for Carmelo for the sole hope of selling him to the Knicks fan in our league that owns Wiggins. But now, I think Carmelo for Wiggins is lopsided. I think he’d be willing to do Mike Conley/Carmelo for Wiggins/Noel but I’m pretty good on big men. I could always stash Kendall Marshall to make up for the AST drain (I still own Lillard, Payton as PGs). So enough rambling…

@WNWDOTCOM: What’s up man?! Wiggins looks absolutely unbelievable right now. 6/3/2/1/1 in his first stint of minutes, with a putback dunk, a nasty spin on Thabo in transition, and mmmmm D stats. I like that deal, Conley is so blah haha.

I know you’re a Burks fan, but I don’t really see his upside besides some explosions in points some nights and FT help. Wish he hit more 3’s and steals and don’t think he’s must own in 10 team 9 cat. By Thursday, my needs are likelier to be 3’s so I’ll probably stream Hood. Do you think Dieng’s minutes are entirely attached to KAT foul trouble at this point?

@dom: The 8 then 4 AST games after only 3 in the first 4 games doesn’t show you upside? They don’t have a PG and need him to facilitate. Must own in 10er? Prob not though… But the AST are coming and I think he starts shooting more 3s, 10er I’m fine streaming the spot. Yeahhhhh, Dieng only getting backup C run… Annoying…

Who woulda thought about Kent Bazemore? NBA 2K15 did. Dude was only like a 70 OVR last year but an absolute scoring machine. That killer athleticism/outside shooting combination is so fun to play with. But they ended up being right and he is doing that in real life too!

I’ve been hanging onto Goran Dragic for a while now and waiting for him to turn it around, but its just not happening. I’m starting to think it could be the heat system just isnt providing him the opportunities to succeed. Should i be concerned and try and get rid of him, even though ill get very little for him in the league im in? or should i sit on him for a few more weeks and hope he somehow turns it around?

@Everybody loves draymond: I think you gotta just sit on him, his value can’t go much lower. If we see him shooting like 8-10 and still only getting 2 AST and those aren’t coming, then I would look to sell

Im getting frustated owning patpat. Thinking of dropping him on a 16 team 9cat league but with jr smith and tucker the only available good fa’s, should i claim one of them or both? I also have dedmon and KOQ at the end of the bench. Im very thin at PF with KOQ, Myles Turner, Patpat and Roco(injured)

So I was offered Wiggins for my Mirotic…. what do you think? I know you like both guys a lot.
I’m could really use the 3s from Nikola, but then today there’s the rumored starter switch….which guy do you think has sustainable value this season? Thanks!

A lot of guys on the wire, not sure if I should drop AG and Dieng for any of them already:
Tyreke, Burke, Afflalo, Jerian Grant, JR Smith, Schroder, CJ Miles
McDermottt, StanJo, Henson, Noah, Ilyasova, Olynyk, D. Lee, S. Adams, Jerami Grant

Thinking of getting Henson and Stanjo/one of the guards for Dieng and AG, thoughts? should I hold any of them? Feels like Bjelica is going to be in the rotation for good is Henson a better option behind Jabari/Monroe? For AG, feel like I should hold but wondering if any of the guys (StanJo? Burke?) available are better options. Powell also droppable.

Thinking of stashing Tyreke 1-2 weeks before he returns, still managing to compete and win a few cats right now and still long way ahead til playoff season so I think I can afford to stash him without an IL spot. Thanks a lot!

@Larry: I feel like I’ve asked you about Dieng every week lol, sorry. Just barely won the past two weeks and I feel like I could’ve won them easily with if I dropped him already, but still hoping he might be given minutes at some point so I’d have a solid team come playoff season.

Need to know which cats I should be targeting/punting, should I punt rebounds/points? Thanks

@Larry: Yeah Dieng I think has been a drop for me for over a week. Yeah Henson, Schroder, Burke seem to lead the list. I’d probably hold Gordon a tad longer, and stream the Dieng spot. Looks like you could use big stats so like a start of Henson, then like S Adams, and just use one every day. I prob would keep adding blocks and hope it’s enough to make REB competitive

Hey JB! Wiggins finally! Would still love to see better FT #s but I’ll take it for now. Brutal 3-6 last 2 weeks with a few counting stats shy of virtually being 5-4 in both. Hate it when that happens on back to back wks.

So lots of folks in my league in love with Dirk and I’m inclined to sell high thinking ceiling isn’t much farther up and floor a lot lower below.

League leading mgr (w/Curry, Rjax, LA and Beal…crazy) proposed Rjax/H Barnes for Dirk/Smart. He needs less TOs, I need pts. Makes sense on paper? Not trusting that Rjax FG stays this elevated and not really a fan of H Barnes game for my build.

Since I have a slot that I need to get rid of—was thinking Dirk/Zbo/Smart for Beal or Rjax+Valanciunas which he offered if I wanted a 3:2. Young season but Rjax and Beal have identical PPG and FT. Higher FG for Beal (although not sure that sticks rest of year) but also not sure FT % sticks based on his career stats. This is all assuming Beal is really just experiencing a bruise and nothing more.

Prefer to keep my lineup and wait out Turner and Gordon for at least another couple of weeks. Gordon is just a freak of an athlete and if he can somehow carve a 22-25 mpg, he’s worth the hold.

I’m keeping Bjelica. Really looks like a very raw Dirk circa 99-00 out there last 2 games even though he’s about 8 yrs older than Dirk was back then. Even if he does 70% of what Dirk did then, would be good enough for 12 team roster. Wolves got some interior game in KAT, slashing from Wiggins and threat from the outside in Kmart and Bjelica.

@kw: Ugh yeah, hate the close losses! Worse than the blowouts… Sure yeah sell Dirk! Def take that deal! Like that 2nd one too, but if that first one was on the table I’d take it and run. Bjelica is a little dif for me, more facilitating and less a post presence, not that Dirk was a monster there but he did more one on one not facing the basket

@JB Gilpin: yeah might be inclined to take the 1st one now that KD hit with the hamstring….and a DNP for Wiggins! There goes pts and 3s especially against a team w/ Harden, Dipo, Melo and Kemba..good grief..lol

i’m getting competing offers now for Dirk..man, either Dirk pulls an old man Timmy D and I look stupid for making this trade or he moves into a 20-25 min role and I look like a genius.

i’m playing hardball and packaging Zbo with Dirk coz i really think Memphis will have to blow up their model of pound it down low with the emphasis on faster pace and stretch 4s.

so best I got so far was:

Rjax/H Barnes/Hibbert for my Dirk/Zbo/Smart(or A Bradley)

Giannis/Kief Morris/Monta for Dirk/Zbo/Smart(or A Bradley)

Not in love with either…Hibbert just looks like he’ll run out of gas come December battling the bigs out west.

And I don’t have faith that Kief turns it around especially with things going on in PHO.

Thanks again for all the help. I promise this will be the last trade help I’ll ask……

@kw: Ugh yeah tough luck there! You’ll look like a genius, Dirk ain’t Timmy. Really no aging big is ever Timmy haha. Dude, that 2nd one is an absolute home run. I like all 3 you get MUCH better than your 3, take that ASAP!

@JB Gilpin: Very typical…one of players involved (Barnes, Giannis) managers back out of a trade. Well, can’t control that but heck Dirk looked pretty good so far. Didn’t catch any part of the game though…just the box score.

@patrickindo: just checked and i’m also trading away playoff games as the 334 sched for nyk and 343 sched for sas. john wall is playing bonkers right now, is that sustainable the whole season? how much do you guys trust melo’s health from what you’ve seen so far.

@patrickindo: Well starting with Melo, he does look better than limping around last year, that said, I would hold Wall. I imagine once Vuc is back, you can move off of Dedmon and nab a usable SF on the wire

@Jay: He also has Kyle Lowry and Gordon Hayward on his team (at least one of which I’d obviously prefer if I’m giving up my two best big men), but I just want to see what your input is to see whether or not I should even trade them in the first place.

@Jay: Yo, ummmm nah I think you’re giving up a little too much. Noel and KAT I think are right there with value with Gasol and don’t think you get enough back. Even with your studs you could use AST, put Hayward in for Chandler and it’s gold!

What up JB! hope you don’t mind me transferring our convo here…our previous one in the 2015 ranks started getting a bit squeezed. haha. anway, thanks again for pushing me on to the Wiggy wagon. Draymond and Wiggins have done me well so far this week. a bit of a bummer with Wiggins missing a game, but i’ll take it. Vooch still out, so i had to sit him this week. hope he gets back soon tho! picked up Dedmon to stream this week hahaha bad news for the basketball world with AD’s injury, great for my team considering i just traded him to get Dray, Wiggy, Vuce, and Kief. but i never like seeing anyone get injured tho, esp not the elite players.

on another note, how legit do you think Towns is? aaaand do you think The Dragon is ever gona bounce back this year? he’s been awful to start the season. asking coz i’m thinking bout swingin a trade for both of em (they’re both in one team). maybe offer Vucevic and someone else. i like Vooch, but he does seem a little brittle. the other owner has been tryna trade Dragic like crazy and i was thinking this could be an opportunity. thanks JB!

@JB Gilpin: darn it man! Vooch came back much earlier than i expected. benched him this week. tsk. anyway, at least Wiggins is playing.

and yeah, might be a little hard trying to get Towns from the other owner. you wana know how he ended up getting Towns? you probly wouldn’t believe me…hahaha. it was a 2 for 2. Towns and Joakim for Z-Bo and Rodney Hood. everyone else in the league went ballistic. it was the Z-Bo owner who offered that. smh. and he was getting offers like Al Jeff and other centers. but noooo, he, for some unknown reason, preferred getting Z-Bo for Towns.

anyway, also got another trade inquiry. this is for another guy in the league. he’s been tryna shop Blake for awhile now. i’ve had to advice him like crazy coz people were tryna undercut him with lowball offers. he hasn’t played fantasy for years, so he’s basically new to all this. and so far, imo, the best offer he’s gotten is Lebron and Mo for his Blake and Kanter. btw, he drafted pretty badly. he still has DMC, Brook Lopez, Giannis, Marcus Morris. oh, and Kobe :)) and Lawson, Manu, Avery Bradley. he’s also got Kyrie, PatPat, Meyers Leonard. so again, i’m actually for him doing the trade. he’ll basically handcuff Mo with Kyrie. and as great as Blake has been, i like Lebron over him for his team. seeing as he still has DMC and let’s hope he don’t get injured Brook Lopez. haha. but i’d love to hear your take on this. Thanks JB!

@JB Gilpin: yeah, i definitely would’ve loved if we played daily lol i know. and this dude is supposedly one of our vets. he still stands by the trade tho. so maybe he knows something we don’t hahaha

i’m close to getting LBJ from the new owner. hahaha. i’d like your thoughts on this: LBJ and Brook Lopez for my Vucevic, Wiggins, and Elfrid. i’d really rather not own Brook, but LBJ is really tempting. and as much as i like Wiggins, his other cats outside of scoring are really blank. he could, of course, improve the rest of the year, and i think he does…but LBJ. and if Brook somehow stays relatively healthy, he’s really good. he did play over 70 last year, right? haha. and i’m a Payton fan and felt i got a steal when i drafted him relatively late. but now that i got Draymond, and soon to be LBJ, i think my assists will survive without him, with Lowry and IT2/3 doin their thing as well. i’m bout to close the deal, btw. so your comments, will be a post reflection on my part. hopefully it’s a good reflection and not a meditative sadness hahaha

@JB Gilpin: dang, the guy rejected it after saying it was a go. pretty pissed right now. haha. after all the help i gave him with his previous trades! hahaha. i’ll enjoy Vooch for now then. hopefully Wiggins drops in a bit more stats than just the scoring

@JB Gilpin: i’m sorry if i’m using this comment section as a place let out my frustration… but mygawd, i am playing against idiots in our league. and i just wish they were playing stupid and trading with me. one owner gave up Jimmy Butler!!!! and Dragic for Monroe and CJ McCollum. and the owner getting Butler and Dragic already has Steph, Drummond, DeAndre, while still playing TJones and Ryan. Monroe is definitely playing better ball this year…..but Butler. i am definitely joining a razzball league next year.

I wanted to know how I made out in this trade. I am top 4 in FG%, REBS, STOCKS, and TOs at the moment and dead last in 3s & FT%. Middle in pts. I made a couple of moves to try to bring my 3s and pts up. I know that my FT% is probably doomed with Drummond & LBJ, so just going to punt that. This is my roster before the changes.

@Andrew: Cool, yeah I think you made all the right moves! In 10 team I like to always get the best player in deal, and you did that with Millsap. Favors helps you where you’re already loaded, and even though you gave up a bajillion steals, you get some back and you’re good in that cat. Nice work!